Yesterday, the news was dominated by the attack on a Manchester synagogue in which two members of the Jewish community lost their lives in an attack in which the assailant used both a car and a knife. It is an unfortunate fact of life that all synagogues have to have armed protection and the attacker was shot dead within a few minutes, thus preventing a much larger tragedy. The police probably acted with the utmost speed and diligence and were praised for their swift actions. But when an attacker is stopped in this way, the fact of shooting them dead rather them being disabled by a shot means that we have to infer the motives rather than questioning the attacker himself. This seems to have been the first time that a member of a Jewish congregation has actually been murdered and the general reaction is one of shock but not complete surprise. One member of the Jewish community attending the synagogue expressed his view that there had been a ‘tsunami’ of hatred manifest towards the Jewish community since the outbreak of the war in Gaza two years ago. Now this appears to be ‘the elephant in the room’ because there must be a line of affiliation between the conflict in Gaza and the rise in anti-Semitism. Perhaps I have not followed all of the news bulletins very assiduously but I do not recall the conflict in Gaza being mentioned in the media. But according to many people in the neighbourhood, even Israel’s war on Gaza has not caused any great division within the community. However, many expressed concerns that far-right groups – their confidence fuelled after an August campaign to hang English flags across the country and a mass rally in London a month later – would seek to take advantage of the attack to further unrest. Across Britain, the number of reported antisemitic acts last year was the second highest in modern times. The Jewish charity which advises communities on security said the Hamas attack and subsequent war had helped fuel thousands of incidents, including cases of violent attacks and threats. The area of Manchester is one where Jews, Muslims and other faith groups have lived harmoniously for a long time and the wave of revulsion at the attack is universally shared. Jews in Manchester and across the country say that they are shocked but not surprised and an attack like this had been expected for some time. One unfortunate revelation has come about after the horrendous attack upon the Manchester synagogue yesterday. Two people died and four were seriously injured but it has now come to light that one of the two people who died did so as a result of a bullet from a police marksman. Details of this are extremely sparse at the time of writing but I imagine that the police service, not to mention the individual marksman, are absolutely mortified. The victim shot by mistake was believed to have been behind the synagogue door, close to another victim, who is in hospital with a gunshot wound, but their condition is not life-threatening.
Yesterday would have been Meg’s 79th birthday but I think it is a day that we will manage to navigate without too much evident grief. I did consult via this blog how we had spent last year’s birthday and, on that day, she had received cards, flowers and chocolates and we had celebrated in a quiet way. We had even watched one half of the film of ‘Schindler’s List’ which because of its length we had put into two viewings. Evidently, the point had not then been reached at which Meg’s decline became progressively more rapid and I think she had been capable of following the plot of the film. But Meg’s condition worsened considerably immediately after Christmas when she suffered a chest infection but it was interesting that she had actually managed to enjoy what was to become her last birthday a year ago now.
Later in the morning, I made the journey down into town by car. A transatlantic storm is sweeping across the country bringing rain to practically all parts of the UK and it is quite windy as well, although not particularly cold. I did not wish to get thoroughly wet so I parked the car in the Waitrose carpark, collected my newspaper and then walked the length of the High street to have my usual coffee in that I call the Donkey Sanctuary shop although that is not its real name. Once inside, I was treated to my customary cup of coffee and then a real teat of some homemade scones with cream and jam (which I only spread on very sparingly) It is much nicer going into an establishment where you are known and can have a friendly chat with the staff. I wandered into one or two of the local charity shops to see if anything caught my eye and one item did which I will probably go and purchase tomorrow. This was a hot water bottle in faux fur but shaped rather like a question mark and is designed to ft around one’s neck. As my Droitwich friend has quite a few problems in her neck which can be exacerbated after a long journey, I thought I would go along and make a purchase of this before it gets sold out. Whether it will prove to be a boon or a white elephant I cannot say but the charity shop is selling these items off quite cheaply. After I returned home, I made myself a simple lunch of mackerel fillets which had already been defrosted on a bed of salad and his kind of lunch can be prepared within just a few minutes.
Some interesting news has been announced during the day. The Bishop of London, Dame Sarah Mullally, a former nurse, has been named as the next Archbishop of Canterbury – the first time a woman has been appointed to the role in the Church of England’s history. The announcement comes almost a year since Justin Welby resigned from the role as spiritual leader of the Church of England (CoE) due to a damning review into its handling of a sexual abuse scandal. It is the first time an archbishop has been chosen since women were allowed to become bishops in 2014. She was actually the UK’s chief nursing officer from 1999 to 2004 so is well used to a leadership role. One wonders what the reaction will be of some of the more traditional and evangelical wings of the Church of England but my feeling is that she will probably bring a breath of fresh air to the venerable institution of the Church of England.